Confrontation 9: a book talk with Dr. Dilshad Dayani

Dr. Dilshad Dayani returned to Teachers College on September 24 to present and discuss concepts from her latest book Confrontation 9: Taking on the Challenges of Work, Family, and Purpose (2014).

Dilshad Dayani is the President and Founder of “World Women Global Council” and the founding Vice President of UN WOMEN-USNC Dallas Chapter. Her mission, passion and goal to impact incubated at the age of 13, and she now serves as a Diversity Advocate, Executive Trainer, Author, Broadcast journalist and International Speaker. As an immigrant from South Asia, her personal challenges transformed her journey into an Empowerment Radio Talk show serving diverse communities in Texas and East Coast. In it she addresses cultural issues with unique solutions.

Many of these solutions start with Dr. Dayani’s CLEAR 5, a toolkit for exploring issues and desired outcomes related to defining a personal purpose. When driven by one’s own passions and desires, Dr. Dayani argues, individuals discover their true potential and fulfilment. Speaking from personal experience and years of research, Dr. Dayani fully unpacks the complexities of following one’s own path as an immigrant female.

The importance of rejecting societal norms, and looking inward for a value system is a consistent theme throughout the book. She emphasizes “conformity to clarity” instead of prescribing to the cultural expectations of the homeland or completely adopting the cultural norms of a new culture. She warns of media and marketing influence, as well as the pressure to conform from family, friends and colleagues. Dr. Dayani suggests looking inward for the most appropriate moral code. For Dr. Dayani, the goal is to utilize the processes outlined in her book to “create mindfulness and generate the power and clarity to create a unique value-based culture map”.

Participants engaged in an intimate discussion with Dr. Dayani, where some shared their own experiences navigating the societal and cultural demands to conform to the expectations of parents, and society. After hearing Dr. Dayani speak of a young woman who left her home country to study art in America and the challenges she faced, an audience member confessed, “This is my story”. It is evident that Dr. Dayani’s work connects with the stories of millions of immigrant women, and is imperative for those considering or currently embarking on their own personal journey to self-discovery and individuality.